11/07/2023
Regarding the ban on abortion At 15 weeks: At 15 weeks babies are already 4 to 6 ½ inches long and their mothers are well into the second trimester. Their major organs have formed, and most are functional. Kidneys filter toxins, the stomach and pancreas produce enzymes for digestion, and intestinal contractions have been occurring for 7 weeks. The heart has been beating for two months and has already beaten around 15,800,000 times. It pumps 26 quarts of blood per day. Each finger can move separately, meaning babies are able to explore their environment and respond to touch.
The brain produces 250,000 neurons per minute, making connections that will last into adulthood. Babies at 15 weeks can feel pain – and it is possible that this ability develops even earlier in the womb.
By 15 weeks, babies are far more developed than legislators want to admit.
A 15-week abortion ban – which can only be achieved under circumstances that would allow for more robust and effective restrictions on killing children in the womb – is not a compromise. It is a surrender.